227 Learning [1] - The Biology of Bloodlines and Alchemy
"We are quite literally breaking the law of physics. We're essentially creating something out of nothing, since that something is coming from something that shouldn't create it." Silas crossed his arms with dissatisfaction clearly written on his face.
Ivy was about to refute his claim when his eyes suddenly shone, as if he had been enlightened.
He quickly raised his hand and placed a finger on her lips before walking toward the board.
"Unless, I've been thinking about this all wrong." Silas frowned slightly.
Alchemy didn't make sense to him. How could a person completely change the molecular structure of something by just adding a few things and burning it under a mana flame? It didn't make sense to him.
"Him" is the key phrase.
He was thinking about it like a human from Earth. Throughout his whole life, he had dedicated his life to understanding the world around him to an extent that no other scientist in his field could rival. He understood everything from the molecular structure of the things he touched to the conditions needed to create certain bonds or reactions.
Yet, with the existence of magic, Gilea had flipped all those rules he used to know upside down. When he first entered Gilea, he had always thought of magic as a way to eliminate his limitations on Earth. It is a way to break the laws of physics and somehow survive to tell the tale. It was why he found it so normal for things not to make sense.
Hell, he even made that mistake now. He just assumed it wasn't supposed to make sense since mana was a thing.
But he was wrong.
The laws of the universe are not nonexistent on Gilea. It's just that, with the existence of mana, they have to be changed around slightly and could even be considered more malleable than the laws placed on Earth.
Mana is just a new form of energy that worked in away that no other energy did.
It was a concept that had come to life. With mana, Gilea simply had other options for how the world could work.
'If I stop thinking about things through the eyes of a scientist, but instead through the eyes of a mage, it starts making sense. Damn, why is it so hard to get rid of established habits? Why can't I just rewrite my way of thinking from when I was on Earth to that of someone from Gilea.' Silas paused for a moment before letting out a small grin.
'It's almost like I'm a human.' She chuckled to himself before dawning a serious expression once more.
'Now, let's think about this like someone from this planet would.' His eyes traveled to the table in front of him. He quickly scanned the ingredients on it and frowned.
There was a patch of silverish-blue fur, a plant that frosted everything around it, and a mineral that he didn't recognize. Beside them were a tube, a petri dish, and a spherical long vase-like flask.
The flask was placed on a triangular piece of equipment with a narrow metal tube under it.
few drops of blood on the empty petri dish, and pouring as much mana into his mystic eyes as 11:45
possible.
'Biologically and chemically speaking, these things should not have the attributes they do have. Hmm... I always thought bloodline meant a genetic component differed, allowing certain species to have certain abilities, but that's not the entire story.' Silas mused before cutting his finger, placing a few drops of blood on the empty petri dish, and pouring as much mana into his mystic eyes as possible.
Narrowing his eyes, his vision zoomed in, allowing him to see at such a level that he could literally watch the blood cells on the Petri dish begin to clot.
Or, at least, that was what was supposed to happen, yet it seemed like the process was a lot slower when it came to his own blood.
'Whenever I absorbed a bloodline, I knew immediately what I could do like that damn skinwalker I killed the other month. I instantly knew I could change my appearance when I absorbed its bloodline. I never saw the need to understand how it happened since I already have a preconceived understanding that I'm only just learning, which is completely incorrect.' Silas let out a wry sigh, dropped a finger into the blood, and placed it into his mouth.
This all happened in less than a minute for Ivy, and she was a little stupified when she saw him drink his own blood.
'I wonder if there's something wrong with me for always falling for maniacs. What do you think, Gilea?' Ivy lampooned, but there was no response from the planet.
She had much better things to do than listen to the whines and thoughts of a child. Of course, that statement alone was not the whole truth. After all, that child just happened to be with the one Gilea called "the destroyer of worlds."
On the other hand, Silas was now swallowing his own blood, completely ignoring the other party in the lecture hall sitting at the back and watching him with a curious expression.
When he finally swallowed the blood, instead of sending it into his stomach like he usually would do whenever blood would enter his mouth, instead, he chose to use his mana and evolution blessing to assimilate it as it went down, before it hit the hydrochloric acid in his stomach.
Silas could feel a subtle change within himself as he assimilated the drop of blood. It was as if a door had been unlocked within his mind, revealing a wealth of previously hidden information. The complex workings of his bloodlines, the intricate interplay between his genes and mana, and the true nature of the powers he wielded began to unfold before him.
In a matter of moments, he comprehended that his bloodlines were not just about altering his genetic code. Instead, they acted as catalysts, igniting a reaction between his genes and the mana that flowed through his body. This intricate dance of genetics and magic worked to unlock specific abilities, traits, and attributes inherent in each bloodline.
"It's not about changing my genes entirely," Silas mused aloud, his voice a mix of realization and excitement. "It's about making subtle modifications that allow my body to resonate with the mana in a unique way."
As the understanding settled in, Silas felt a surge of clarity. He was seeing the world through new eyes, comprehending the intricate ties between blood, mana, and power. It was a revelation that transcended his scientific background and embraced the mystical essence of Gilea.
With newfound insight, Silas's gaze shifted back to the table, his eyes locking onto the ingredients before him. He picked up the plant that frosted everything around it, feeling the mana that emanated from it. He examined the silverish-blue fur, sensing its essence and its connection to his bloodlines. And the unfamiliar mineral, he recognized as a conduit for mana, a key component in the alchemical process.
"This isn't alchemy as I understood it," Silas murmured, his voice a mixture of wonder and curiosity. "It's a fusion of genetics and mana, a harmony between the natural world and magical energy."
His mind buzzed with possibilities. He began to see how the combination of these ingredients, when catalyzed by his blood and mana, would yield a reaction that could create something new that defied the traditional laws of physics.
"Perhaps alchemy isn't about bending the laws of nature," Silas concluded, a glint of determination in his eyes. "Maybe it's about finding the harmony between nature and magic, about uncovering the threads that bind them together.
The reaction is mostly mana-based. It's just that the ingredients themselves hold the memory of the ability and bloodline through the form of genetics. Mana is more of a catalyst that awakens that gene, making it compatible with the mana itself to create a certain outcome." Silas muttered under his breath with excitement. He hadn't felt like this in a very long time.
"So, through alchemy, I can combine the different characteristics of a product though both mana and genes. However..." Silas' eyes narrowed again when he saw the mineral. It wasn't much different than the minerals he had seen before, but he didn't understand its purpose.
They didn't have bloodlines. All they had was mana; therefore, how could it be mixed with genetic and biological components when it is purely chemical? Sure, that would have worked back on Earth, but on Gilea, where genes were quite literally guides for how the mana should and would work... It didn't make sense.
"Crap... I'm stuck again." Silas sighed and rubbed his forehead with a tinge of annoyance.
"And I can't ask our teacher either since he won't be here until tomorrow." Silas' annoyance grew once more, and that annoyance remained within him for the rest of the day.
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